Birth Injury Litigation

Medical negligence during labor and delivery can cause serious birth injuries to infants. These injuries can have a long-lasting impact on the child and their family.

A successful lawsuit can help pay for medical costs now and in the future as well as lost wages and other damages. A successful lawsuit may take years to reach.

Compensation

Despite remarkable medical advances childbirth can be dangerous. Babies and mothers alike hope that doctors act in a professional manner and avoid making mistakes that could cause long-lasting damage. If your baby was injured due to negligence of a hospital or doctor, you may want to contact a New York birth injury attorney injury lawyer to find out what legal recourses you have.

A successful claim for birth injuries can result in financial compensation. This can be used to pay for future and current medical expenses, lost wages, emotional stress, and other areas of damage. In some cases juries or judges could also award punitive damages for unjust conduct.

Your attorney will work closely with network experts witnesses to determine what occurred and the accepted standard of care. They will review all of your medical records and evaluate what the medical staff did during your birth. This will help to build solid arguments and increase your chances of success.

Before bringing a lawsuit your lawyer will generally attempt to negotiate with the malpractice insurer. This involves sending a demand packet, which includes a detailed account of your family's losses along with medical evidence to support the claims. The malpractice carrier will then respond with an offer. If no settlement is reached, the lawsuit will proceed to trial.

Damages

The damages the plaintiff could be awarded can be either financial (such a medical bills) or birth injuries not-economic (such as pain and suffering). In many cases, juries decide to award both. The amount of damages a victim receives will be determined by the degree to which the accident has affected their life, and also the evidence of their past and future losses. Certain states also impose limits on how much an individual jury can award in non-economic damages.

To be able to seek compensation, you must prove that the defendant did not fulfill their duty to care. This is done by mixing medical documents, expert testimony, and depositions. Medical experts are people with specialized knowledge in a particular area of medical practice. They evaluate all evidence in the case and are able to testify at trial if necessary. In birth injury cases, the expert will help establish that the defendant's actions are in a way that is not consistent with the standard of care expected from an expert in medicine with the same training and experience in the specific circumstances of the case.

In addition to medical experts, attorneys also interview anyone who may have a relevant story or insight. These are sworn, out-of-court statements that permit attorneys to directly question witnesses about what transpired. Some depositions are conducted on the phone or through a video conference, but most are held in the courtroom. These conversations are often difficult and stressful, but they are essential to constructing a convincing case for clients and obtaining the highest possible amount of compensation.

Statute of Limitations

In New York, as in many states, medical negligence claims must be filed within the statute of limitations. Parents have two and a half years to file a suit within the time frame of a negligent act, omission or inaction that they believe caused their child's injuries.

Your attorney may review the medical records of your child to determine which obstetricians, nurses and other hospital personnel might have played a role in your son or daughter's birth. They can request any relevant documents and information that may help determine the reason for your child's injuries.

Your lawyer must establish the malpractice by establishing that the defendant was bound by obligations to your child and failed to provide the proper care in similar circumstances. To prove this, birth injuries your lawyer will work with medical experts to analyze the medical professional's actions with accepted practices and procedures.

A lawyer can also assist you to identify and locate witnesses to testify on your behalf. These professionals can give an insight into the doctor's decision-making process and how a specific mistake or omission caused your child's birth injury. This evidence can be used by your lawyer to support your claim for compensation. A successful medical malpractice claim involves two separate legal claims: one for the injured child and another for the parents.

Expert Witnesses

With the right assistance families can receive the compensation they need to pay medical bills as well as lost earnings due to time off from work, rehabilitative treatments and therapies and the cost of long-term care. The most important factor to win an injury case at birth is having the most skilled experts on your side.

They will review the evidence and provide a professional opinion on whether a medical professional violated their obligation of care by taking an act that could have led to an infant's injuries. They can simplify medical terms for juries or judge to understand.

The expert witness's job is to give an impartial medical opinion that is reflective of the current state of the art at the time of the event. This means they must not exclude any relevant information to create a view that is more favorably disposed to either the plaintiff or the defendant.

Experts should also study relevant medical records as well as current literature to in making an informed judgement. In certain instances, an expert may be required to give an unassailable statement in the courtroom. These meetings can be stressful but they are a necessary part of preparing for a trial. Your attorney can assist you prepare for these sessions and ensure that you are treated with respect.